


A Simple Admiration

by phichithamsters



Series: phichithamsters's twitter fics [13]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Drabble, Ferdinand likes Hubert's hands, M/M, Tea
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:22:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 583
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28177593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phichithamsters/pseuds/phichithamsters
Summary: Ferdinand wants Hubert to take off his gloves during their afternoon tea.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Series: phichithamsters's twitter fics [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2027525
Comments: 4
Kudos: 51





	A Simple Admiration

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WadaFics](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WadaFics/gifts).



> For Wada, who requested this prompt on CC: I like the idea that Ferdinand insists that Hubert takes off his gloves when they have tea alone together. He likes to see his hands. And if they are far enough into their relationship, then Hubert will comply and be embarrassed but also touched! 
> 
> I too, love Hubert's hands. So here we are.

The thing Ferdinand loves most about Hubert might just be his hands. 

Oh, how he adores Hubert’s intellect, and the dark, brooding tilt of his lips, and the eyebrows that are always crouched too low, obscuring his eyes— all of these things are beautiful, too, but there is something about his  _ hands _ . 

He cannot place it, at first. Just an inkling of longing as he watches Hubert sign papers with a quill, neatly scrawling a signature and then removing the parchment from the stack, wetting his quill, and so on and so forth. Ferdinand could watch him for hours, which he almost does, until Hubert makes a comment about it. 

“What’s wrong with me sitting here, enjoying your company?” Ferdinand asks. 

“It’s odd,” Hubert says. “And you are staring at me.”

“Would you rather me look away?” Ferdinand poses. 

Hubert looks at him flatly. “Yes.”

And that was the end of that. But the matter would not be closed forever, because Ferdinand is a stubborn man. 

An hour later, he proposes tea. Hubert nods in agreement, and they walk over to the gardens behind the palace. It’s mid-morning, so the small patio in the rose garden is abandoned. Ferdinand calls for tea, and the two sit in a shaded corner. 

The tea comes steaming, black for Hubert and a light, herbal blend for Ferdinand. He takes off his gloves, folding them together on the table, and then adds a small sugar cube to his drink and stirs it lightly. 

Hubert does not remove his own gloves. Delicately, he picks up his teacup and sips it. 

Then, he catches Ferdinand watching him again. 

“I would prefer it if you do not stare at me while I drink,” Hubert says. 

Ferdinand smiles. “I’m not staring at you. I’m just wondering why you haven’t taken off your gloves.”

Hubert looks away, the smallest hint of a blush on his cheekbones. Delightful. 

“I see no reason to,” he says brusquely. 

Ferdinand clears his throat, and, because there are no others in the garden, reaches across the table to lightly brush Hubert’s hand with his own. 

“I admire your hands,” Ferdinand says. “I wish you would show them to me, at least while we are relaxing like this.”

He and Hubert may be in the early stages of their courtship, but that just makes Ferdinand want to  _ admire  _ him all the more. 

“You’ve seen my hands plenty,” Hubert says defensively, but he does not remove his hand from the table. 

“Not in the daylight.”

Hubert scoffs. 

“Please?” Ferdinand asks. “No one else is around.”

“If it means that much to you,” Hubert grumbles, and pulls back his hand. He plucks the tips of the gloves from his fingers, gently tugging them to expose his hands. 

Calloused, nicked, and weather-beaten, but still— beautiful. 

Ferdinand takes Hubert’s hand in his own and brings it to his lips. A chaste little peck, but Hubert flushes even further. Hubert brings his other hand over his face to conceal it. 

What lies behind that hand: the beginnings of a smile, perhaps? Hubert’s lips upturned slightly at the corner? Ferdinand can only imagine, for now. 

He releases Hubert’s hand, and they both take sips of their tea, listening to the birds sing in the distance. 

Ferdinand smiles. Hubert has done him this kindness by removing his gloves in the garden. If he does not feel like sharing his smile with the rest of the world— very well. That can be reserved for Ferdinand alone. 


End file.
